Old Dominion Speedway future in doubt

Well writ, Andy!

The situation with OD is similar to that of Riverside Raceway in SoCal. When the track was built it was in the middle of nowhere. Then suburban sprawl began to spread closer on all sides. The new residents complained about the noise and the property's value skyrocketed (along with property taxes I am sure). Consequently, that remarkable facility was turned in to an outlet shopping center.

Also a victim of the same crime against racing was Ascot Park in Gardena, CA. It's now commercial buildings and parking lots.

"They paved paradise and they put up a parking lot."
 
robbybee said:
Well writ, Andy!

The situation with OD is similar to that of Riverside Raceway in SoCal. When the track was built it was in the middle of nowhere. Then suburban sprawl began to spread closer on all sides. The new residents complained about the noise and the property's value skyrocketed (along with property taxes I am sure). Consequently, that remarkable facility was turned in to an outlet shopping center.

Also a victim of the same crime against racing was Ascot Park in Gardena, CA. It's now commercial buildings and parking lots.

"They paved paradise and they put up a parking lot."
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Same song I referenced in the article. :)

ODS' marketing people are NOT HAPPY about this article. Of course, I've asked for a denial of any of the statements in the article and have not gotten one.

ODS' marketing people made **** up about a track being built "in the next few months" in Stafford County, and they're pissed off that they were called out. They're demanding I follow up on that, which I did and it's fiction. The process to build a new track is lengthy -- it has to go through several bureaucracies before the first shovel can break ground.

The part about people not showing up pissed them off -- also accurate. In the five years I've gone there, I've never seen more than 2,000 people there. And 2,000 was for their biggest race of the year.

They've "sold more than 10,000 tickets" for races before, but the amount of fans in the stands reality doesn't support that fantasy.
 
The kennedale tracks here are in the same statute. We have 2 dirt tracks on the same property, across the street from the drag strip. Standing along the fence at the drag strip at the 330 cone, the only times you can here the pro-mods are on the burnouts and as they go by you. While they're backing up and staging, the two dirt tracks (which really do run at the same time) a quarter mile away are louder than the promods 300 feet away.

All 3 tracks have a midnight curfew and don't require mufflers. One of the local racers is on the city council, and he's the only reason the tracks are still there. EVERYBODY in the town that has anything to do with any of the 3 tracks and even us "out of towners" show up to defend the tracks. Probably the only times they actually need a fire marshal to enforce the CoO. The city has been trying to close all 3 tracks, but we're winning, so far. The day they require mufflers is when alot of people will go away. We're trying to prevent that.
 
Seekonk will soon suffer the same fate. Built after WWII in the middle of nowhere. Now surrounded by commercial and residential property. Lot's of prime land for the next Lowes or Home depot.

We now need Lobac mufflers and have a 10 pm curfew. You better be on your way out at 10 because they kill the lights. Bastages.

Ct Dragway sold a bunch of land to the Ct Injuns, they put up luxury condo's. Condo owners byitched about the noise. Bye Bye Ct dragway.
 
Southampton Speedway near Emporia, VA is still (allegedly) maintained by the land owners, and looks in pretty damn good shape, wouldn't take much to make it active again. But it too is a good 3 to 3 hours from northern Virginia.
 
Same song I referenced in the article. :)


YEP! I thought it was appropriate! ;)
 
Whether the track is open or not, I will not be back.

ODS is perturbed at the article. Without denying anything in the article, they've banned us and refused to offer any comment or anything.

(Kind of hard to get their side of the story if they won't offer their side)

VADirt, see you at VMS next year!:beerbang:
 
AndyMarquisLive said:
ODS is perturbed at the article. Without denying anything in the article, they've banned us and refused to offer any comment or anything.
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now that would tick me off to no end. i'd write a follow-up article stating their actions to your article.
 
SlowNeasy said:
now that would tick me off to no end. i'd write a follow-up article stating their actions to your article.
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I don't get even. I'm going to continue writing and following up.

This is what people do when they have nothing to say. Everybody else, including people in the ODS inner circle, think the article laid the situation out and even made the case for ODS to stay around.

And, as far as mismanagement goes: ODS used to attract 4,000 people on any given Saturday Night six-seven years ago. The car counts were impressive and they were attracting national championship drivers. Now, they struggle to get 200 people in the stands and 14 cars. You can't blame the economy when Langley, South Boston and Motor Mile have 20-30 car fields each week and over 2,500 fans each week and attract guys like Peyton Sellers, Philip Morris, Lee Pulliam, Brandon Butler and Frank Dieny Jr. I don't see the dirt tracks in the region struggling with that much drop off. I don't see the dragstrips struggling that bad. That's not the economy.
 
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